DOTr's Statement of Clarification on New Policy for Clark Airport

Wazzup Pilipinas!


Statement of Clarification
11 May 2017


The Department of Transportation (DOTr) wishes to clarify an erroneous news report stating that the building of a new terminal at Clark International Airport will proceed without public bidding.

What transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said was that they will no longer entertain unsolicited proposals for the project first, and just bid out the operations and maintenance of the airport in the future.

Secretary Tugade also mentioned that he prefers that the government first develops Clark Airport, rather than risk delays in the event a bidding involving private sector players would lead to litigation that would eventually place the project on hold.

This “hybrid” mode of implementation means that the government will not entertain multi-billion peso offers to develop Clark airport and develop it on its own before bidding out the Operation and Maintenance component. This will enable government to fast-track projects without the risk of delay brought about by possible lawsuits filed by losing bidders.

Further, Tugade said Megawide-GMR and JG Summit-Filinvest will be informed of the new policy.

The development of the Clark International Airport now falls under the jurisdiction and responsibility of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), and remains to be one of the priority infrastructure projects of the Duterte administration. The BCDA targets to open the new terminal by 2019.

3 Selected Teams Get A Chance to Fly to Switzerland for Kickstart: The Swiss Accelerator

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Being recognized internationally for a groundbreaking business idea is every entrepreneur’s dream. And this dream may come true for three startups from the Philippines and India: Ascendant Technologies Inc. (Philippines), HDC Agri (Philippines), and Fat Cat Robotics (India), as they have an advantage to be shortlisted and fly halfway across the world to Switzerland to participate in Kickstart: The Swiss Accelerator, an 11-week program that will help scale their promising business ideas related to one of the program’s pillars: Food, FinTech, Healthcare, Robotics and Intelligent Systems and Smart Cities.

Photo above shows the start-ups, Ascendant Technologies Inc. and MachiBox Inc., get mentored by John Lagdameo (Director, JGSOM Business Resource Center, ADMU).

Impact Hub Manila, an incubator and co-working space provider, is the outreach partner for Asia of the Kickstart: The Swiss Accelerator, one of Europe’s largest multi-corporate, zero-equity technology accelerators. As part of this regional campaign, Impact Hub Manila hosted a Roadshow event where 12 teams were pre-selected to get training from three mentors and to showcase their innovative solutions to a jury panel.

“Being part of the largest global network of entrepreneurship and innovation centers, we partner with international organizations and Impact Hubs across the world to give opportunities for Philippine startups and entrepreneurs to showcase their talents,” shares LizAn Kuster, Co-Founder of Impact Hub Manila.

We believe Filipinos have the skills and knowledge to be part of the growing startup scene in a global scale and so Impact Hub creates the platform for them through collaboration,” adds Ces Rondario, Co-founder of Impact Hub Manila.

The Roadshow Event is in partnership with the Embassy of Switzerland in the Philippines, in celebration of the 60th year of Diplomatic Relations between Switzerland and the Philippines. This collaboration is born out of the commitment of the Swiss Embassy to harness creativity, and support enterprising solutions. Deputy Head of Mission Raoul Imbach represented the Embassy of Switzerland in the event as one of the judges. He is a big supporter of the entrepreneurship landscape in the country.

I Can Sing in Japanese! Spring 2017’ and ‘Your Home is My Business! Returns

Wazzup Pilipinas!

This May, Sony GEM brings back all the drama that unfolds with the return of two popular shows - the Finals of the Spring 2017 edition of Nippon Television Network Corporation’s (Nippon TV) singing competition I Can Sing in Japanese!, and the sequel to the highly acclaimed drama Your Home is My Business! Returns.

Filipino singing sensation Krissha Viaje, who won the Asian search of I Can Sing In Japanese! in February, will make her debut in the international stage as she showcases her singing prowess in her own rendition of a hit Japanese song, together with 11 other finalists representing the U. S. A., Belgium, Norway, Argentina, Chile, and from other parts of the world.

This season’s panel of judges consists of R&B and pop singer May J, singer-songwriter Tatsuya Ishii, and famed musician Tetsuya Komuro, who is widely regarded as one of the most successful producers in the Japanese music industry.

Now on its seventh year, the latest edition of the prestigious competition will be hosted by multi-talented artiste, Nakai Masahiro and TV announcer Yukari Nishio.